You Can (Not) Forget
by Reixe
Summary: Shinji, alone in a world of his own making, save for a ghost his mind has conjured to torment him, realizes too late that this isn'tt what he wanted. Now, offered a second chance by an Angel from a different dimension, will he be able to forget his old world and forge a new path? Can the Third Child avoid the mistakes of the past? Or even now, in a new world, will the past follow?
1. A New World

**Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion in any form. All characters of this story are owned by their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.**

**AN: **This is my first Eva fic. Seeing as how Evangelion is my favorite anime, I figured it would only be a matter of time before I tried my hand at it. That being said, here's the first chapter of **You Can (Not) Forget**. I hope it goes well. Leave reviews please, always appreciated.

Well, on with the show.

**A New World**

The sky above was red, bleak, and hope shattering. The world was silent, razed and void of all life except for one. A boy stood atop the rubble of a broken building. He looked no older than 14. White hair covered his red eyes. His hair used to be brown, eyes blue. He remembered since it was not too long ago. He didn't really mind the change though – he was reminded of Rei this way. The boy, Pilot of Eva Unit 01, looked to a large object: A mountainous structure that undoubtedly resembled Rei's face. Like he could ever forget her with such a thing around.

Turning away from her, Shinji looked out at the sea of LCL before him. Its orange color making him sick just looking at it. He could smell it – the stench. It smelled of blood; of death and all he could think about when looking at it was how his life had gone so wrong. From the moment he first set foot inside Unit 01 to the initiation of Third Impact. He wondered if this was the world he wished for – this loneliness. Was it worth it? He already knew the answer to that.

"I made a mistake," he said, "I made a mistake..." Shinji crumpled to his knees, wondering what he would do now. He wanted to go back so badly. He wanted to fix everything; he _needed_ to.

"Damn right you made a mistake, Third! You killed everyone! You killed _me._" Shinji didn't react to the voice. He was positive this was his mind's way of punishing himself. He was crazy or something – he knew, but he just didn't care anymore. Shinji glanced to his side, taking in the bandaged, plug suit adorned form of Asuka. Long red hair covered her left eye – or what was left of it. Her right eyes was fine, a beautiful blue color that currently held a malicious glint in it that was all for him. Asuka looked like she should be dead – and she was. He'd strangled her to death when she'd appeared in this world along with him.

He didn't know why he'd killed her. Pent up anger? A dash of sexual frustration? Out right hate? He honestly didn't care about that anymore either.

"You know, Third," started Asuka, "Watching you die alone here by your own making will definitely be amusing, but it just won't satisfy me. You deserve to suffer more. A lot more. I wish you could, at least then you'd be able to truly pay for your sins."

Shinji looked away from the girl, focusing his attention back on the sea.

"I made a mistake…"

"Then fix it."

Shinji rolled over, looking behind him at the sound of the voice; this wasn't Asuka. Had his mind created something else to torture him? He wasn't so sure. There was a woman there; she didn't resemble anyone he knew. Dark, flawless, brown skin was what he noticed first, a white dress billowing in the wind as it clung to her form. Her hair was long and white, as were her eyelashes; her eyes were red. It didn't take Shinji long to make a connection.

"You're… an Angel?" he asks. The woman smiles faintly, floating down to the rubble. Now standing before him, she nods.

"Yes. However, I am not of your world – I suppose I was at one point. In some form, but I am not the same as then. Different, yet not," she pauses here, noting Shinji's bemused look, "I am confusing you. I will explain." Shinji only gives a nod.

"You know of the Dirac Sea, yes?" Shinji nods, fidgeting slightly as he remembers his fight – or lack thereof – with the Angel Leliel. It had trapped him in its Dirac Sea and he almost died trying to escape. Ritsuko had later told him it could be the door to other dimensions or something like that.

"I am the Angel who has control over it. I am Leliel."

"That's impossible," interjected Shinji, "I – I killed you," he finishes lamely. Was it smart to say you'd killed someone to their face? There was something wrong with the thought he'd just had in itself. How do you tell someone you killed them to their face if they're dead?

"Yes, you did. Something that the Leliel of this world, I'm sure, could have never foreseen. As I have said, I am she, yet not. As the only angel to freely control the Dirac Sea, I am able to interact with my many selves. We are one, but separate." Shinji nodded again, getting the gist of what she meant.

"I desire your assistance, so I sought you out. You said you made a mistake, yes?"

"Yeah…"

"Then, my brother," she smiles again, kindly, "Would you like to fix it?" Shinji nods.

"I need to fix it."

"Then come with me. Another dimension requires your assistance. It is similar to your own, but I warn you there are some differences. Small and large."

"Are my friends – are they alive there? Is Rei... Is Asuka?" Leliel nods.

"Then I'm coming."

"That is wonderful, but first, we must do something about your appearance – and your attitude. Do you have the resolve for this? Truly?" asks Leliel.

Shinji turned away from her, looking out at the LCL Sea once more. There was nothing left for him here. He'd ruined everything and now he just wanted to forget. He wanted his friends back. He wanted this tragedy to be avoided at all costs. He wanted to bury these memories with better ones, brighter ones, happier ones. He'd give anything for that – it was time to stop running away. Turning back to her he gave his reply.

"Yes."

"That is delightful. Now, concerning your appearance. I cannot change you back into your human form; it is impossible. You are brethren to us now, an Angel. I can, however, teach you of your abilities. I will go into more detail at a later date, but for now I will help you with this. We can decide our appearance on a whim and as I'm sure you discovered thanks to your Tabris, we can hide what defines us as Angels. Both are simple matters of will. Just focus on the form you wish for and as for your status as an Angel, you must refrain from using your AT field. It is the simplest way to fool your companions." Shinji nodded again, taking in her words. She was being awfully helpful – but that concerned him. As Shinji did as he was told, focusing on his old features, he asked just that.

"Why are you helping me? I killed you – in a way. Shouldn't you want revenge or something?" Leliel shook her head, smiling once more.

"Revenge is not our way. In this dimension, I was your enemy, yes. The same cannot be said though, for the me that exists in my own dimension. You will understand in time, but for now, we must hurry. You have an angel to defeat."

"An Angel? I thought you weren't my enemy."

"Yes, _I_ am not your enemy. The same does not hold true to all the other Angels you have faced, I am afraid. Now," said Leliel as a black portal appeared behind her. Holding out her hand, she waited, "Come."

Shinji, though concerned, decided this was his best bet in reclaiming everything he'd lost. Looking to the orange sea one last time, he clenched a fist before taking her hand. She pulled him toward her and with a scathing remark from Asuka that Shinji was thankful only he could hear, they vanished into the Dirac Sea.

==X==

"How's Shinji?!" demanded Misato, her blue hair flying behind her in a rage as she leaned over Hyuga. Her brown eyes narrowed into a glare with no direct target. If anything, she was angry at herself.

"No response. Condition unknown," he replied.

Central Dogma was abuzz with the bark of orders and yelled replies. Sachiel had just put a hole through Unit 01's head and it had gone silent. The synchronization's inverting. Lieutenant Colonel, Misato Katsuragi grimaced; there was nothing she could do and she felt like she'd just sent out an innocent boy to his death.

"So that's it," she frowned, "Abort mission! Pilot's safety is our top priority! Get him out of there now; eject the plug!"

"It's no use," shouts Maya, turning to the lieutenant Colonel in her chair, "All remote links have been severed!"

Misato looks back to the screen, observing the unmoving form of Unit 01 as worry mars her otherwise attractive face. Her eyes widen, fear grabbing hold of her. She'd done it. She'd killed an innocent 14 year old boy.

"Unit 01 reactivating!" exclaimed Maya. The technicians of Central Dogma watched as its remaining eye glowed a violent yellow. Its jaws opened and a roar escaped, giving them all goose bumps.

"Oh no," whispered Misato.

"It's gone berserk," finished Ritsuko, her green eyes dilating, unsure of what would happen next.

"Pilot's okay!" yelled Hyuga, grabbing their attention, "I've got his pulse. Pilot Ikari is fine!"

"What?!" Ritsuko replied, disbelievingly; her blond hair fluttering behind her with how quickly she turned her head. Unit 01 shouldn't be able to go berserk if the pilot was still conscious. Not unless…

"Pilot's Sync Ratio is skyrocketing!" exclaims Maya, "It's at 165% and counting!"

"My god…" said Ritsuko, breathlessly, "What is happening?"

==X==

Shinji winced in pain as he held his hand to his head. Looking around he could see that he was inside the entry plug, and standing before him was the first angel he'd ever fought, Sachiel. Its long arms and legs, its broad shoulders, and its creepy, bird-like angel mask. All in all, it looked very opposing, but compared to the things he'd fought following its attack, it wasn't impressive.

_So this is what she meant by me having an Angel to defeat_, thought Shinji, _She couldn't have brought me here before Unit 01's arm was broken and its eye was gone? _He frowned. He'd have to talk to Leliel about her planning later. For now though, he had an Angel to kill.

_Whatever. Mother?_ There was no response to him for a moment, but then a distinct voice replied.

_Shinji? You – how do you? _

_I'll explain later, mother. Right now, I need your help. _

_Of course._

Shinji smiled as he focused, his sync rate climbing and climbing. Once it reached the hundreds Unit 01 howled and stood. Sachiel turned to him, a beam coming from its eyes immediately. Taking hold of the controls Shinji responded, jumping above the beam easily. The Umbilical cable was destroyed and the timer began to count down.

As Shinji landed, his feet crashing into Sachiel's frame he almost laughed. He wouldn't need the full five minutes he had. Yelling, he brought Unit 01's fist down on Sachiel's mask. Its eyes glowed and Unit 01 swiftly jumped back, erecting an AT field as the beam slammed into him. Its pink light splayed across the hexagonal barrier, withering out of existence; never making contact with Unit 01. Buildings around Shinji and Unit 01 were reduced to smoldering rubble, but he stood unscathed.

The massive purple giant growled, steam leaving its jaws as it bent its knees.

"Let's tear it to shreds," said Shinji, his eyes narrowed. Unit 01 bellowed out a guttural roar before Shinji commanded it to charge. It did so, Unit 01's feet digging into the concrete. The ground shook, glass shattered as it passed, cars were flattened beneath it on its warpath. Anything daring to get in its way would meet its end under the purple giant's mighty foot. Sachiel's AT field met the giant, abruptly stopping its assault.

"Break it!" yelled Shinji. Unit 01 growled in reply, raising its broken left arm. Blood gushed from it. As the muscles bulged, bone reconnected; Unit 01 had just regenerated its arm in a matter of seconds. The purple giant gripped the Angel's AT field and tore it apart effortlessly.

==X==

The Nerv staff of Central Dogma watched, astonished as Shinji and Unit 01 handled everything the Angel threw at them in stride.

"What's going on?" asked Misato, looking to Ritsuko. She hoped her friend had an explanation for what was happening. "He could barely walk just a few minutes ago! How is he doing this?!"

Ritsuko looked to her friend, shaking her head. She had no idea – and that was rare. Dr. Ritsuko Akagi, praised for her brilliance, was rarely stumped. If such a thing would happen, Misato would have called the person who'd told her a liar. Ritsuko didn't understand. Shinji shouldn't be able to move an Evangelion so effortlessly on his first sortie, he shouldn't have such a high sync ratio either. She glanced at it; the ratio had stabilized at 200%. This was unheard of.

"I – I don't know."

==X==

Sachiel's arms lashed out, hoping to catch hold of the Eva. Unit 01 grabbed hold of them, one in each hand. Placing a leg on Sachiel's core, Shinji pulled back the controls, and in response, Unit 01 pulled the Angel's arms. As Sachiel's skin began to tear it struggled, trying to free itself. One last time, it attempted to fire its beam – and much like the last time the beam met with an AT field. The beam rebounded, exploding in the Angel's face due to the close range. The explosion was the last thing Unit 01 needed to rip Sachiel's arms from its body.

The Angel's blood flew into the air, spattering across the street. Now Armless, Sachiel tried to do the only thing left to it. Sachiel jumped at Unit 01, hoping to self destruct on it. The Eva growled, throwing down the Angel's limbs.

"You're not sneaky enough to pull that off twice," growled Shinji as Unit 01's arm thrust forward, an AT field at its palm. Unit 01's hand met Sachiel's core and shattered it in one swift movement. The core and the angel's body exploded in a sea of red liquid, dying Unit 01's body and the streets below a deep shade of red.

_Thanks mother, _thought Shinji affectionately.

_Anytime. Don't forget to explain how you know about – this; me. And how exactly you're able to communicate with me._

==X==

"Third Angel, Sachiel has been defeated," said Aoba, still in awe at what he'd seen. Misato nodded, a solemn look on her face.

"Recover Unit 01 and the pilot."

Commander Gendo Ikari watched the battle from his private office, Sub Commander Kozo Fuyutsuki at his side. His hands bridged in front of his face hid his expression, coupled with his glasses, but he was undoubtedly surprised. His son had done an extraordinary job, and there was no clear reason as to why.

"SEELE won't stay quiet about this," said Kozo.

"They will until they find out. For now, we must get to the bottom of this ourselves," replied Gendo.

==X==

A few hours had passed since the end of the battle and Shinji was now standing in front of the door leading to Misato's apartment. He didn't remember it taking this long for him to arrive here in his dimension, but he assumed that had something to do with his performance today. Ritsuko and Misato had kept him back for tests and questioning. Ritsuko wanted to make sure he hadn't suffered any contamination from his high sync rate.

Misato on the other hand wanted to know where he'd learned to pilot. She'd asked if his father had taught him in secret somehow. Shinji simply said it was his first time and that he must have a knack for it or something. It was certainly a lie, but she certainly wouldn't have believed the real reason. Not now and probably not ever.

"Well, Shinji," said Misato, dragging him from his thoughts, "this is your new home. Sorry about the mess," she said, sheepishly as they walked in. Shinji cringed as he looked around. He'd hoped to never have to clean Misato's place again, but this was one of the unavoidable downsides of coming here.

Shinji nods, probably not giving any better response than he did the first time he came here. He didn't really care though, a lot was on his mind and he was honestly just happy to see her again. The only thing he was unhappy about was the fact he had to keep the pendant he'd gotten from his Misato hidden, but he figured that was a good trade off for actually having her here with him.

He let Misato lead him to his room and when she walked to hers, hoping to catch a little shut eye, he walked into his. Shinji wasted little time in setting up his futon and falling onto his pillow. He was tired, much like he had been that first time around. He closed his eyes, hoping to fall asleep quickly.

"You did gloriously." Shinji's eyes snapped open and he turned onto his back, looking up at the floating form of Leliel. She was smiling down at him and as he sat up, she floated closer to him.

"Right…" he replies, still trying to get used to the idea of having an Angel he'd killed as an ally.

"I assume you have questions?" Shinji nodded.

"I'm confused – I guess. Why did you need me exactly? I mean, umm, not that I'm not grateful for the second chance, but… shouldn't there be a Shinji here?"

"I believe I told you, brother, that there would be some differences concerning your dimension and mine…" Leliel paused here, sighing. She wasn't sure how he'd take this exactly, but she would have had to tell him at some point, so she might as well do it now.

"The Shinji Ikari of this dimension is dead, brother."

"W-what?!" Shinji exclaimed stammering over his words in surprise, "But I… I beat Sachiel!" he yells, slamming his fist into the floor.

"Yes, brother, _you _defeated Sachiel. The you of this dimension, however, was not so strong. He died after Sachiel put that hole in Unit 01's head. This is why you were needed." Shinji massaged his temples, trying to take this all in.

_I – he died_, thought Shinji, shaken._ That could have been me._

"Is there – is there anything else I need to know?"

Leliel shook her head. She would tell him if she knew anything else, but she did not know all that would occur in this dimension yet. There was no way for her to prepare her brother.

"I am, for what it is worth, sorry, brother. I do not know what is in store for you now, aside from what we already know about our Angel brethren coming to make contact with Lilith, everything else could change, or may have already. Even so, I will do all I can to assist you."

"That's something else I'm confused about," replied Shinji, "Why are you helping me? You're an Angel so why would you want this world to avoid Third Impact? You didn't say anything of the sort, but that is my goal and you're assisting me, so I assume you must think the same."

"We Angels do not have free will, aside from Tabris, of course," she replied, "Whether or not we agree with causing Third Impact, we cannot go against what our father, Adam, desires. That is how it is supposed to be, anyway. In this dimension, I have, like Tabris, been granted the privilege of free will. I personally do not wish to see Third Impact, so I am helping you."

Shinji nodded, not exactly wanting to be reminded of Kaworu – Tabris.

"I will help you with the rest of your Angelic abilities tomorrow, for now, you should rest. You have had quite the long day, brother. Good night." With that, Leliel rose into the air and vanished. Shinji lied down, a lot to think about.

"I just realized," he said to no one, "I didn't look out for Toji's sister…" Shinji swore silently, realizing that even though this was a brand new world, the old one could still follow him here. Forgetting would not be as simple as he had hoped – then again, nothing he ever wanted turned out simple.

"Toji's going to beat me up if he finds out I'm a pilot," sighed Shinji. As he fell into a fitful sleep, the young boy couldn't help but think tomorrow was going to be a long, exhausting day.


	2. What Can (Not) Be Changed

**Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion in any form. All characters of this story are owned by their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.**

**AN: **Well, here's chapter two. Gave me a little trouble for some reason. I don't know why, I only know it was determined to make me hate my laptop for just a little bit almost every day. Anyway I'm moving the story rating up to M from this chapter onward. I realized that it might be best, considering the anime this fiction is based off of. I also wanted to have the freedom to have a bit more colorful language when I thought it was necessary and make this as twisted (though that may not be the exact word I'm looking for, I'm finishing this around 3 in the morning so I don't care) as necessary depending on where I may be in the story. Last, but not least, thanks for the reviews you guys! They were so , I've said what I thought was important, so…

On with the show.

**What Can (Not) Be Changed**

Shinji cringed.

He cringed as he watched himself choke Asuka. A wicked smile spread across his features as his grip tightened; his fingers wrapped around her neck like a noose. His thumbs pushed in on the center of her neck. Her eyes were wide, pleading with him silently. She wanted to breathe so badly; desperately.

He wouldn't let her.

Shinji watched as his grip tightened again. He watched as Asuka's hand grew weak; limp. It fell from its place on his cheek and hit the ground. A soft thunk echoing in his ear. Finality. Asuka was dead; she wasn't coming back. Shinji watched as he pulled his hands away from her throat – hand shaped bruises left as evidence.

Shinji looked away now as the scene began to replay itself. He was tired of seeing this.

==X==

Shinji sat up, sucking in air as if he'd never breathed before. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead, his heart hammered in his chest, and his breath was shallow. Shinji's nightmare had been horrible. He'd choked her, yes, but it had been nothing like that. He _hadn't _enjoyed it. He was punishing himself, he thought – he knew. He was sure.

"Bad dream, Third?" asked Asuka maliciously. A dark grin was stretched across her lips. It didn't take long for Shinji to realize that she'd had something to do with his dream. He looked away from her, trying not to acknowledge her existence.

"Trying to ignore me, Third? I won't let you; I won't let you forget what you did to me. To our world. You can try as hard as you want. You can run as far as you wish – but you listen, and you listen good." She was in his face now, the darkest of glares present in her good eye.

"I won't ever let a day in your pathetic, worthless excuse for a life go by where you can think you will ever be able to escape what you've done." And with those words, Asuka was gone. Shinji sat there for a moment; the silence around him giving way to a ring in his ears. It was quiet, too quiet – and he was tired. And Angry. And worried. And he didn't want to see anything from his old world ever again.

Shinji muttered to himself, muttered that he'd made a mistake. Lying back down, he closed his eyes and fell – after an hour – into another fitful sleep. Another day was dawning on Tokyo-3.

He didn't think it was going to be a good one.

==X==

Shinji awoke, bleary eyed, as the sun crept into his room through the blinds. The Third Child rubbed at his eyes, still tired from his horrid night. His first night in this new Tokyo-3 had been less than enjoyable, to say the least, but he figured he could work on that as the days passed. For now though, he figured he'd get up and make breakfast, then prepare for school. Shinji remembered that – at some point in the mess of tests and interrogations the night before – Misato told him he'd be attending school today.

Now that he thought about how quickly he was going to be in school, he concluded that it was rather abrupt and most certainly impromptu. Last time this happened, he'd been in no way prepared. Not that it really mattered. Even if given more time, he still wouldn't have been ready for the beating Toji gave him.

"Brother."

Shinji jumped, his heart pounding as adrenaline pumped through his veins. Taking a few calming breaths, he turned to his new – family, of sorts. Leliel was behind him, slightly overhead, hovering. She had a smile on her face as he looked her over in scrutiny.

"Are we really related now? _Really_?" he asks, skeptical now that he's been able to sleep on the situation.

"Yes," she replies, instantly. "Is that really what you should be asking right now? Do we not have more important things to discuss?" Shinji looks to his watch, reading the time. It read six in the morning. School started at eight – and he assumed that Misato would drive him there for his first day, so he knew where to go. In that case, he wouldn't need to worry about how long he took making breakfast, although, he decides, he may need to try eating _after _she's driven him and certainly not before. He didn't want to throw up.

"No, I suppose it isn't what I should ask," he replies, deciding he can spare however much time this takes, "How are you doing this? I mean, shouldn't Nerv have detected you by now? Even if they didn't, there must be camera's in my room and Section 2 is _always _watching."

"Well," starts Leliel, smoothing out her dress as she descends, taking up a sitting position, "I told you, I hide my A.T. Field. Is it not their primary way to detect an Angel? As long as it is not in use, I am safe from their detection. Secondly, you're the only one that can see me. I am bending the space around us. It is… preventing the Lilin from seeing me; or from noticing that you are talking for that matter. It is but a trifling matter, Brother."

Shinji nods, not really wanting to get into the technicalities over the use of the dimensional/space abilities his sister – he winces here, knowing that he will _definitely _have to get used to calling her sister – may have.

"Why are you helping me?"

"Did you not ask me that yesterday, Brother? I believe I told you."

"Yeah, you did," replied Shinji, "But that wasn't really an answer. I want reasons. So why?"

"Well, Brother, I have had the opportunity of watching man fall to us in other dimensions, I have watched them triumph against us, and I have watched them destroy themselves. I have seen much death and much glory. Brother, I've seen something else too. Something common amongst all the dimensions."

"What's that?" asks Shinji, curiously. He wasn't really sure he wanted to know about the fate of the other places. He didn't want to know if he'd died there too, or something worse – if there is something worse. However, he was curious of what was common across the Dirac Sea.

"In all the dimensions, the Lilin, whether they be works of great joy and peace, or works of war and terror, they have built things. They bring something new. They – create. And we, my brother, we, despite being the closest to father, despite our great abilities, we create nothing. We bring about one thing, no matter what. Whether we fall to the Lilin or vanquish them, all we bring is death. This is the common string throughout the Dirac Sea. Brother, I do not want to see the Lilin of my world stop creating."

Shinji nods, slowly. He hadn't expected that to come from her. He hadn't expected her reason to be so – he honestly didn't know what it was, but it was good. He felt he could relate – in some way – to how Leliel must feel. Trapped in a war she doesn't want to fight. Constantly watching her brethren fall or seeing the humans perish. Has she cried over this? Has she hurt?

"Do you have any other questions, brother?" asked Leliel, bringing Shinji from his thoughts.

"Ah… yeah," he replies. Shinji takes a moment to order his thoughts, thinking of what he wanted to ask her next.

"So… I'm an Angel now, right? What can I do?"

"You are faster, stronger. Compared to you, the Lilin cannot compete. Your Stamina is nearly limitless, you no longer need air, water, or food to sustain life, and you can regenerate as long as your Fruit of Life, or S2 Engine, as the Lilin refer to it, is not destroyed. Much like myself, you can fly and you now have the use of your Absolute Terror Field. Oh, and teleporting. Aside from that, you should have something that defines you. An ability; a distinction. Tabris has the most powerful A.T. Field ever recorded among the angels. I control the Dirac, Ramiel boasts the most destructive power, and Zeruel, in terms of ability, is our greatest warrior," she replies.

"So what can I do?"

"I do not know." Shinji stares at her blankly.

"What?"

"It has yet to manifest, brother. Until it does, we will not know what you can do."

"Right… So, food. Can I still eat? Even though I don't need it?"

"Of course," replied Leliel, "aside from the fact that you're going to need to in order to not make anyone suspicious, you'll still be able to enjoy food. You just don't need it anymore."

"Okay…" replies Shinji, finding her answer to be annoying in some way he can't readily identify, "Then where is my S2 Engine?"

"Where your heart used to be," Leliel responds. Shinji nods again, taking that in as he touches his chest. He still feels a beat. It's odd to him; he never knew S2 Engines could beat.

"This is – weird. To say the least. Honestly, I'm surprising myself. I thought I'd be freaking out a lot more by now."

"Yes," said Leliel, smirking, "I thought the same, but I suppose ascending to godhood has some side effects, no?" Shinji smiled, nodding his head. Thinking about it, he had done _a lot _recently. Maybe this kind of stuff just didn't get to him anymore. Then again, he best not speak too soon; wouldn't want to jinx himself.

"So, what am I learning first?" he asks.

"Well, based on what you've done in your dimension, you should already have knowledge of how to use your A.T. Field. Regeneration is more of an automatic thing. I taught you how to adjust your form yesterday and you know how to hide your Angelic status, considering how simple it is there was no doubt of that. Teleportation has to do with your A.T. Field, so it will probably be a long while before you learn that. I guess all I can really help you with right now until your distinction manifests is flying."

"And I do this how?"

"It's just another trifling thing; another matter of your will. Though I suggest we wait," she replies.

"Why?"

"I have to go and discuss some things with some of our other brethren. I will see you," replies Leliel as she levitates into the air and vanishes. As he watches her go, Shinji wonders how she does it.

_If teleportation has to do with their A.T. Fields then shouldn't she have been detected?_ Sighing to himself, he chalks it up as having to do with her whole being-the-Dirac thing. _Wait a minute_, he thinks again, _doesn't her Dirac ability have to do with her having an inverted A.T. Field? This is so confusing._ Grumbling, Shinji decides to ask about it when he sees her next.

Looking at his watch, he sees that not much time has passed and with another sigh, he gets up. He needs a shower and some time to think.

==X==

Misato stumbles out of her room, bleary eyed and sluggish. She can smell something wonderful coming from the kitchen, something – she knows – definitely couldn't have had anything to do with her. Last she checked, she didn't sleep walk and she _sucked at cooking_. As Misato made her way into the kitchen, almost floating across the floor as the scent led her, she saw her new roommate handling the stove like it was his second home.

"Morning, Misato."

"M-morning… Shinji, you can cook?" He grunts in the affirmative and Misato, in the back of her mind, is on her knees and thanking – well – not… God? Yeah, Not-God. She could work with that. She was on her knees and thanking Not-God for sending her this blessed boy. Though she'd never admit it, she was getting tired of her micro waved… whatever it was.

After Shinji set the table – which Misato noticed had been cleaned – the two of them sat down to eat. Her roommate had made eggs, pancakes, and some tasty looking things first, Misato guzzled down her beer which seemed to wake her up. Shinji raised a brow at her, still not quite understanding how beer woke her up in the mornings – or gave her energy period. The two of them ate silently for a while before Shinji decided to start up a conversation. It was something he couldn't imagine himself doing a while back, but right now, change seemed… good.

"So you like western food?" he asked. Unlike the Misato of his dimension, this one actually had edible food in her fridge. If she hadn't, then the two of them probably would have gone without food this morning. He was pretty sure all Misato would have needed was a beer and he wasn't about to get food poisoning his first day from eating her instant… stuff.

"It's okay," shrugged Misato, taking another bite of the food Shinji had prepared. She had to admit the boy was good. If things were like this, she wouldn't need any more microwavable dinners, "I just wanted to try cooking again and I heard western food – breakfast at least – was easier to make." Shinji hummed amusedly as he continued to eat. For some reason, he was rather sure that she had failed this little experiment of hers – or she never attempted in the first place. Of the two possibilities, his bet was on the former.

"Enough about the food though," she smiled, "you seem… different. That is – different from when I first met you yesterday." Shinji's hand twitched at her question. Strictly speaking, in terms of character, he hadn't realized he'd been that off. Across the table, Misato had been watching him closely. She'd noticed her new roommate's twitch and filed it away.

"Really?" he asked, sounding mildly surprised as he continued to eat. Misato casually took a swig of her beer, eyeing the boy as she did so. She noted how calm he was; far more calm than when she picked him up on the side of the road. He didn't seem as frail either.

"Yeah. What happened?" She inquired with a disarming smile as she set down her beer. She waited for him to answer, digging into her breakfast once more, as he remained silent. Shinji, for his part, knew that even though she was interrogating him and he was doing well in avoiding having to actually answering her question, his silence was working against him too.

It was no secret to him that Misato had a keen mind beneath her brashness and playful demeanor; he'd had all the necessary time to find this out. Simply by not answering her now, he was probably giving her insight into his current attitude. He didn't think that was particularly bad, but he was sure she had some sort of knowledge of how he acted before his time in Nerv and he was positive that she would get Ritsuko to look into it. Ritsuko would in turn, let her know that the change from then to now was too sudden. From there, the two of them would no doubt try to find out what the cause was.

Sad as it was, Shinji knew that he'd already stepped into this. His future was to be filled with interrogations on this particular topic and there was nothing he could do about it aside from prepare himself.

"Dunno," he deadpans, shoving more egg into his mouth, "I guess it was just time for me to grow up," he adds after he finished swallowing. Misato nods, saying she understood and the two of them lapsed into silence until breakfast was finished and Misato decided it was time to drive him to school.

Shinji – who had forgotten Misato was driving him this morning – suddenly remembered that he'd eaten before getting in the car with her. Realizing the consequences of his action, Shinji – without realizing it – could do only one thing.

The Third Child paled.

==X==

It had been a little more than two weeks since his first day at school and things were already going better than the last time – in a way. On his first day, Toji was in the class, chatting with Kensuke. The jock seemed rather somber, something that didn't go unnoticed by Shinji. During class, Shinji kept to himself. He decided that for now, instead of worrying over the possibilities, he would simply observe those who were once friends to him. There wasn't much of any change in them.

Kensuke was still fascinated with military technology and his camera. Currently, he was recording himself flying around a small VTOL model while making gun noises, stopping every so often to adjust his spectacles. Toji was sitting on the bespectacled boy's desk, silent. They'd had a lapse in conversation during this small break period between classes. Toji seemed quite deep in thought about something, and Shinji had a good guess as to what it was – he hoped he was wrong.

Once lunch finally rolled around, the Third Child looked to see Toji and Kensuke eating with Hikari, and one other girl he didn't recognize. She had long, straight, black hair; large, round glasses like Kensuke and a small mole beneath her mouth on the left side. Her eyes were slightly disturbing to him. They were red; nothing like the red of Ayanmi's, Leliel's, or his eyes beneath his illusion, but that changed nothing. They were very dark, almost as if black. The color is something that he would actually see more as orange than red, nevertheless, they disturbed him – yet another thing he resolved to ask Leliel about.

Watching the group of four a moment longer, Shinji took a deep breath before walking over. He'd decided to be a little more proactive this time around. He wanted friends.

"Hi. Um… Mind if I eat with you?"

Just that small leap of faith had changed things for him. In the weeks since then, Toji had been absent quite a bit, often leaving him to talk with Kensuke, Hikari, and the other girl – whom he learned was named Mayumi Yamagishi – more often. That wasn't to say he didn't know Toji well though, the jock turned out to be his best friend despite the absences. As it stood, things were progressing nicely.

Today, he was sitting next to Kensuke, the bespectacled boy going on about the "military's secret weapon." It was obvious to him that he was referring to Nerv and the Evangelion. Shinji half listened, nodding when appropriate while Hikari rolled her eyes, telling Kensuke that he should stop complaining about what he was and was not allowed to see.

Mayumi was reading a book; ignoring the boy and his childishness on the subject all together.

"Hey guys," came Toji's voice. The four of them looked to the door, seeing the tracksuit clad jock walk in. He held no smile on his face and like he often did these days, came to school late, missing two of their earlier classes. They greeted him, Mayumi actually taking time to look up from her book now, giving him a smile. Shortly after he walked in, class started up and they resigned themselves to listen to their teach ramble on about a pre-second impact world.

They were currently supposed to be in math.

Shinji wondered how exactly they ever really got homework before. Most of his memories of school were filled with talking to his friends, Asuka yelling at him over something, or the teacher ranting about second impact and such. He _knew _they did actually go over subjects. He remembered the homework and knowing the material. He just couldn't seem to remember an instance where class had actually consisted of learning.

Shaking the thoughts away, Shinji's attention was caught by a red flashing on his screen. Looking down, he saw what it was and his blood ran cold. He hadn't been keeping up with the days very much. Hanging out with his friends and actually having Toji like him from the start had been very distracting, but still, he hadn't known he'd been so out of touch with the passage of time. Today was the day Shamshel attacked.

Today, his classmates would finally be fed up with wondering if he was a pilot. He'd done all he could to not make them suspicious, even going so far as to refrain from talking to Rei despite wanting to start on a good relationship with her the most. Going to her would have ousted him as a pilot almost immediately. Thankfully (or unfortunately, depending on how one looked at it), she had been absent most of the time due to injury. It left him little to go and talk to her or vice versa. Glancing around the classroom to make sure his suspicion was founded; he eventually caught eye contact with two girls in the back of the room.

_No doubt about it now_, he thought. Today had just become a lot more complicated. Answering the call, he was met with the same question as before. They'd asked if piloted the Eva; a "Y/N" ending the question. Shinji wasn't stupid enough to make the same mistake twice though, he figured he could come up with some way to hide his status if he tried hard enough.

Looking around again, Shinji caught sight of his friends. Though they were trying to seem uninterested – Hikari and Mayumi may very well be paying attention to class (or lack thereof) – he knew they were curious of his response. Swiftly, the Third Child typed "No" as his response and the class seemed to buzz with disappointed murmurs. Shinji didn't care though; if he got to keep his friends he didn't mind not being praised for his piloting. He wasn't Asuka anyway, he didn't crave such a thing.

==X==

"The class was really thinking you were that robots pilot for a while there, Shin-man," laughed Toji. He slapped Shinji on his back, and while the Third Child grunted a little in discomfort, he would trade this for a punch to the face any day. The five of them were sitting under the shade of a tree in the courtyard. It was lunch time and as usual, they would be enjoying it together. Shinji and Hikari had made the lunches for everyone, the three remaining members of their group ever grateful.

"Speaking of the pilot. Regarding what he did, Suzuhara…" Mayumi trailed off here, letting it sink in where the change of topics was about to head to. Toji stiffened; his jaw tightened as he thought about what happened. "How is your sister doing?" Mayumi continued.

As Shinji had dreaded the night he defeated Sachiel, Toji's sister, Sakura, had been injured in his battle. It didn't seem as though it was as severe as last time – something he could take solace in – but she had been injured nonetheless. Toji was still as angry as last time. Only difference now was that he didn't know his friend was a Child of Evangelion.

"Fine," replied Toji, crossing his arms as a scowl marred his face, "It'll still be a while before she gets released, but she's supposed t' make a full recovery."

"That's good," replied Shinji, happy that she wouldn't need some kind of expensive operation to recover. If this was the case, he may be able to prevent the whole Bardiel incident and save Toji sometime down the road.

"Yeah, right," Toji snorted, angrily, "if that pilot hadn't been so stupid none of this woulda happened in the first place! She'd have been fine." Shinji lowered his eyes, feeling a little less confidant in himself. Toji's words weren't enough to shake his resolve, but they certainly hurt. He didn't want to go through this just making different versions of the same mistakes.

"Toji, I know this hurt you, but come on. Be reasonable," sighed Hikari.

"Reasonbale?!" Toji roared, getting to his feet, "My little sister gettin' trampled on _wasn't _freakin' reasonable, Class Rep!" Indignation dripped from his voice like acid with every word. Shinji could hear the venom when Toji spoke and it hurt him just having to hear it.

"But it wasn't really his fault… how was he supposed to look out for a civilian he didn't even know was there? And while fighting a monster at that?" she responded, softly. She felt horrible about what happened to Toji's sister, she really did. She didn't want to think about such a thing ever happening to either of her sisters; it would have destroyed her. Despite that, she didn't think it was right for Toji to hold a grudge like this, especially over something that, while on a very grand scale, was nothing more than an accident.

"He could have! He coulda been more careful," growled the jock, "He coulda done something…"

Shinji started to zone out here, their conversation fading away into muddled noise as he went over what they'd said. Toji believed he could have avoided hurting his sister, and while Shinji regretted it, he wasn't so sure he agreed. The first time this had happened he was just a green rookie who couldn't even make his Eva walk. Realistically, there was no way he should have won that battle. He'd come to accept that he couldn't have protected Toji's sister and Hikari was right – he hadn't even known she was there.

The second time around though, he was better, and he knew he could have done better. Sure, appearing in the entry plug in the middle of the fight hadn't been ideal, but he could have done better that time, right? Or was there really nothing he could have done?

"Oh no," came the malicious voice of Asuka from behind him, "you could have thrown it across the city; somewhere unpopulated. You're just too stupid to have thought about it, Third Child." Shinji's eyes narrowed; he found her timing to be _impeccable._ Still, what if she'd been hurt before he was sent to this dimension? He never did find out exactly when she received her injuries. Asuka, privy to every one of his thoughts, sneered at the boy as she came up on his side.

"You think that means anything? That just means the other you – who's still _you_ – was too weak to avoid her becoming collateral damage. Besides, what if she _had _gotten hurt after you arrived here?" Shinji frowned at her words. They made sense – to him anyway. Unlike his first time in that fight, he had known she was somewhere around this time, too. Still, she was so small compared to his Eva, could he have really seen her?

"Don't even try that shit, Third! Unit 01 could have easily picked her up on the monitors!" spat Asuka in reply, conveniently drawing him away from the fact that Unit 01 _hadn't_ noticed her like it probably should have."Stop making fucking excuses! Just face the facts, Third. You're unfit to be a pilot and since you're so damn stupid you let this happen _twice._ You forgot to even check for her, Third Child. That's the bottom line here. You're pathetic."

Shinji wanted to deny what she'd said, but he couldn't really think up anything in retaliation. She was right; the bottom line was that he'd forgotten to even see if she'd been around while he was fighting. He could blame it on his situation all he wanted, but it didn't change anything. Smiling to herself at making Shinji feel like shit, the Asuka his mind had conjured as punishment started to fade away, satisfied for the moment. Right before she vanished though, she saw something out of the corner of her good eye that brought a wide grin to her lips.

"Well, look who's here. This is going to great."

Asuka's words stirred Shinji from his thoughts, causing him to take in his surroundings once again. He glanced at his friends; they were casting odd looks just to his right. Confused, he turned his heat and dread immediately filled him. Pale skin, equally pale blue hair, and striking red eyes filled his vision – standing right next to him was Rei. He'd been thinking so long that he'd forgotten to separate himself from his friends near the end of lunch so he could make sure this didn't happen.

_Damn it, _he cursed, _I failed again!_

"Pilot Ikari, there is an emergency. We are needed at Nerv immediately. I will be going first." With that, giving no regard for what situation he might have been in, Ayanami turned on her heels and ran away. Silence filled the air; a tension so thick it could be cut with a butter knife swelled. Realizing it was too late to try and hide anything now, Shinji did the only thing he could think of. Turning to Toji, he spoke.

"Toji, I-"

And before he could finish, Toji's fist met his face with a crack. Shinji hit the dirt, the jock looming over him with an intense glare as the emergency klaxons blared across Tokyo-3.

Apparently, some things just couldn't be change.

* * *

**Review please! I'd love to hear what you guys think.**


	3. The Silent Roar

**Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion in any form. All characters of this story are owned by their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.**

**AN: **Well, here's chapter three. This chapter introduces some differences from what I've seen in a lot of other Eva fics and I hope it's well received. Any criticism would be appreciated also.

Well, on with the show.

**The Silent Roar**

Asuka slammed the phone down and yelled. A string of Teutonic curses flew from her mouth. Next to her, a girl of similar age adjusted her glasses as she smiled mischievously.

"She's gonna get mad at you if you keep yelling, you know." Asuka glared at the girl, her red hair whipping around when she'd turned her head. Flipping her the bird, the red head picked up the phone again, her fingers slamming down on the buttons. The other girl giggled and spoke up again.

"I don't really get what the big deal is, Princess. So what if Misato hasn't gotten in touch yet? She's busy, you know? The Third Child is doing his job and she oversees him and what not."

"Verdammt!" exclaimed Asuka, slamming the phone down again, "That's exactly it!" Her call had immediately gone to voicemail this time. "What's so special about him that she can't even take a simple call?!" There was a pause, the glasses wearing girl smirking playfully. It was almost like a cat.

"He's good in bed?"

Another pause.

"What the hell?! She's not a pedophile!" Asuka growled back, grabbing the other girl by her arms and shaking her. The girl's brown twin tails were now flying all over the place.

"Geez, Princess. You need to learn how to take a joke. Anyway, you can tell her about the trip later," replied the brunette. Asuka grumbled as she let the girl go, muttering something.

"If all your jokes weren't so lewd maybe I would actually laugh…" The other girl giggled good-naturedly and proceeded to piss off the red head once more.

"Not my fault it's something you're uncomfortable with just because you've never had any." Asuka rounded on the girl, their blue eyes meeting.

"Fuck you, Mari."

==X==

Misato sighed as she turned off her phone. She wanted to talk to Asuka, she really did, but now just wasn't the time.

"You know," started Ritsuko, "She'll be quite angry when you call back, right?" she added, not truthfully asking a question. They both knew the answer already, after all.

"Somehow," replied Misato as she looked ahead. On the screen ahead of her was a crawfish/shrimp looking creature floating towards Tokyo-3. "I think she will understand." All around her, the techs of Central Dogma were hard at work. Shinji was already in the entry plug awaiting orders.

"How's Shinji, Maya?"

"He's doing… well – fine to say the least, Dr. Akagi. Sync ratio holding in the 90's. Although, his brainwaves seem to be fluctuating quite a bit." Ritsuko thanks her and turns to Misato, an odd look on her face.

"I was expecting less. Considering the mood he was in when he got here…" the doctor trailed off, taking a sip of her coffee as Misato nodded, "Oddly enough, he's showing the signs that his thoughts are not settled. It's certainly – intriguing." Neither was sure what happened, but they could tell the boy was bothered by something when he walked in. He seemed kind of depressed and had what looked to be the start of bruises on his cheeks and arms; his shirt looked dirty and unkept too. It looked as if he'd gotten into a fight and neither woman was going to rule it out. Now they just needed to know why.

==X==

Shinji sat in the entry plug, his eyes closed as he reached out to his mother. His thoughts, in all honesty, were rather hectic. He was doing his best to seem calm, but he doubted Ritsuko would be fooled. If not for the fact he was now an Angel and knew the true nature of the Evangelion's, he was sure his sync ratio would be atrocious. He needed to talk to his mother. She could help him settle his mind – he was sure. Besides, he still had to explain why he even knew about her in the first place.

_I am glad you've come to talk to me again, Shinji. _Shinji could feel the warmth her happiness was bringing. It was an odd sensation; he was surrounded by it, drowning in it.

_Me too, mother. _

_What is troubling you? I can feel it. _Figuring he could hit two birds with one stone, the Third Child started from the beginning. He told her of his original dimension, how he was an Angel now, and how he came here. He then told her of what happened just a little over an hour ago with Toji. The jock hadn't stopped his assault with just one punch. He'd beat on him for a good few minutes.

Hikari and Mayumi had stopped him, but even they looked a little angry. He was sure they weren't mad about the accident regarding Toji's sister. They were probably angry that he'd chosen to hide his identity and then proceed to befriend them, not speaking up even when Toji began talking about his sister's condition.

Kensuke hadn't done a thing; he probably thought Shinji deserved it. To be perfectly honest, Shinji thought the same. He hadn't realized the steps he'd taken to simply try and protect his friendship with Toji could possibly make things worse. The way he'd gone about it made it seem like he was doing something bad.

_I'm sorry, Sweetie. Listen, it will be fine. I know you think you've ruined what you were trying to protect, but you can fix this. Give them time, then try again. And apologize first, understand? I love you, but you didn't exactly make the best decision._

_Um… Yes._

_What was that?_ She asked. Shinji could feel her glare even though she had no physical form.

_Y-Yes, Ma'am…_

_Good. That's better._

Briefly, the Third Child wondered if she'd dealt with his father like this.

_You better believe I did. Now look alive, Shin. I believe you will have to sortie soon._

Shinji opened his eyes, glancing at the display just in time for Misato's face to pop up in a window.

"I assume it's time to launch?" he asks, already knowing the answer. He wished the JSSDF would have had him launch sooner. It would have been a better idea, in his opinion. By now, the JSSDF should realize they don't have the technology to fight against an Angel. They were too prideful.

"You bet it is. Took those guys long enough to realize it wouldn't work out for them. They're just wasting money," she replied with a scowl, "Anyway, you ready for this?" Shinji gripped the controls, nodding. Shamshel wouldn't be a problem.

"I'll turn it into sushi."

"Good to hear," replied Misato, taking note of his confidence. She and Ritsuko were definitely going to have a few words with him.

"Evangelion Unit 01, launch!"

Shinji felt his body – Unit 01's body, being shot skyward; the walls around him rushed by as he ascended. Sunlight flittered in overhead and soon, he was topside. The city, much like last time, seemed deserted. As Shinji prepared to check for any straggling civilians anyway, something he never expected occurred.

"Shinji!" responding to Misato's voice, he went on the defensive – only it was too late. Caught off guard, Shinji screamed. Searing pain tore through his shoulder as he willed Unit 01 to back up, pulling away from his enemy.

One of Shamshel's energy tentacles had pierced his shoulder. Though injured, Shinji wasted no time in raising his palette rifle and opens fire. Shamshel's A.T. Field comes to life, deflecting the bullets before its ten bone-like legs extend, wrapping around Unit 01. It was then that Shinji realized that the Shamshel he'd fought _didn't _have such appendages. His Shamshel hadn't been this strong either. Just as Shinji tried to free himself, Shamshel began to squeeze.

_**You, Brother, shall fall today. **_

Shinji's eyes narrowed. He could _hear _it. Shamshel was talking to him. Its voice was commanding. Shamshel held a contralto like none he'd ever heard before; angelic and sinister all at once.

_**You stand in my path, not knowing your own arrogance. You shall not hinder my quest. By my hand, you shall attain your end. To protect the Lilin you stand against your family and now – now you shall know the consequence. Father shall rise once more brother, and you…**_

_**You shall become ash.**_

The Third Child, gritting his teeth, came to understand something now. Even though he'd fought them all before, things _would _be different here. He would no longer allow himself to think he always had the upper hand in these battles. From now on, each Angel would be treated seriously. Each would be treated as if he'd never engaged them before. He could tell that he'd die if he treated them otherwise.

_We'll see about that!_

==X==

Kensuke fiddled with his camera as the shelter shook. They were in a large room; many students from the school were inside. Most were chatting; others were silent, worrying over what could be happening above ground. Toji, Hikari, and Mayumi were next to him. None of them had been in a mood to talk after their confrontation with Shinji. Despite that, Kensuke didn't want the silence to continue. Taking a deep breath, he spoke up.

"Sounds like the battle's started." Mayumi and Hikari looked Kensuke's way as Toji grunted. The jock still hadn't cooled down. He felt betrayed; anger coursed through his veins. One of his friends had been the pilot of the giant robot that injured his sister – and he didn't even have the nerve to tell anyone about it. Kensuke hummed before saying something else. His voice was low, directing his next words to Toji.

"I want to see it." Toji's eyes shifted to his bespectacled friend, skeptical.

"Are you stupid?"

"No… I just feel like we won't have another chance like this. I want to see it fight with my own eyes." Personally, Toji thought the idea was ludicrous. Despite that, he could tell by the look in his friend's eyes that even if he didn't go with him, Kensuke would still go look. Sighing, the jock decided to go with him.

"I'll… go with ya. Just cuz' I know you'll go whether I come or not. Least this way I can keep an eye on ya," replied Toji, his voice a whisper. Kensuke smiled and thanked him before the two got up, telling Mayumi and Hikari that they needed to go pee. Hikari, though slightly disgusted at their lack of subtlety, allowed them to leave.

"Didn't those two use the restroom before we got here?" Asked Mayumi after the two of them left the room. Hikari's eyes narrowed; her friend was right. She heaved an annoyed sigh as she got up.

"Come with me to go get them? I know they're going to do something stupid." Mayumi nodded, got to her feet, and followed her friend.

==X==

Shinji grunted as he ducked beneath another assault from Shamshel's energy whips before bringing his knee into its head. He had to switch to close combat after the Angel chopped up his rifle. Shamshel seemed unfazed by Unit 01's assault. Without flinching, Shamshel gripped unit 01 with its legs and brought the giant to the ground.

Unit 01 crashed, ripping apart asphalt and crushing cars and buildings beneath it. Inside the cockpit, Shinji frowned as he kicked Shamshel off him. The Third Child knew this could go a lot easier if he just decided to raise his sync ratio, but he knew he couldn't do that all the time. Ritsuko, and his father would get suspicious if he could exceed a 100% ratio every battle. He could make an excuse about the last one, considering how close he was to dying then, but for this battle he didn't have an excuse as to why his ratio would just skyrocket.

From the air, Shamshel's whips lengthened before its body began to twirl. Shinji got to his feet as Shamshel picked up speed, whirling around like a spinning top – a deadly spinning top. Shinji had never seen it do that before, nor did he think this angel could move so quickly. Shamshel neared him, its speed picking up. Unprepared for the sudden burst in speed Shinji only barely dodged the onslaught of tentacles. Unfortunately, he wasn't as lucky as he'd hoped.

Shamshel had severed his umbilical cable.

As the five-minute countdown started, Shinji frowned. He'd hoped this wouldn't happen.

"Shinji! You've got to stop it from spinning or you won't be able to hit the core!" yelled Misato from the window on his screen. He glanced at her, wondering if she really thought he hadn't figured that out before he let the thoughts go. Now wasn't the time to question how smart she thought he was.

"I know. Any ideas?"

"Fraid not, Kiddo. I'll see what I can think up though. Just stay safe and retreat if you fall below a minute in activation time." Shinji grunted as he focused his attention on Shamshel again. The Angel moved forward, showing off its speed once more, only this time, Shinji was prepared. Grabbing the progressive knife from his shoulder, he erected his A.T. Field. Shamshel's energy whips met the octagonal wall and the speed of its spinning decreased.

_**The barrier of your soul shall not protect you, brother. Your time has come. Accept death.**_

_You should worry about yourself, _Shinji thought in reply. Taking his chance, Shinji lashed out, his prog knife coming to life, vibrating dangerously. Having slowed Shamshel down, the knife met with one of the whips. They clashed, and though Shinji's knife was knocked away, melted and unusable, Shamshel was forced to stop spinning. Not wasting a second, Unit 01's other arm came up. Shinji winced, fighting past the pain in his shoulder from having to lift the injured arm.

With a flick of his wrist, an A.T. Field formed at his palm. It folded and unfolded in small increments before slamming into Shamshel's core; the air around Unit 01's palm and Shamshel's core was pushed away from the impact and the Angel was thrown through the air. Shamshel crashed through buildings, bringing them down and kicking up dust, the massive beast left a trail of destruction in the ground; a scar on the earth, before finally skidding to a stop. Checking how much time he had left, Shinji grimaced and pressed his assault. Unit 01 took off, closed in on Shamshel, and raised its leg. Before Shinji could stomp on Shamshel's core however, its tentacles grabbed hold of the purple giant, lifted Unit 01 into the air, and spun it around before launching the Eva towards a mountain in the distance.

==X==

Toji and Kensuke made it out of the shelter undetected. They were kind of far from the battle, but that was fine by them; neither of them really wanted to die. Just as they were about to situate themselves near the shrine at the top of a small mountain so they could watch the fight, they heard a voice that sent a chill down their spines.

"Suzuhara! Aida!" Toji shivered as he turned around. Moving in on them like a predator hunting its pray was the angered Hikari. As Toji looked into her glaring eyes, he swore he saw a vision of hell on that day.

"C-Class Rep?! What… What are you doing here?" Hikari explained why she'd followed them as she grabbed hold of his ear. Hard. The jock winced in pain as she pulled him along, intent on bringing him back to the shelter. Mayumi and Kensuke just watched the scene in amusement and fear respectively. Throwing a glare over her shoulder, Hikari beckoned Kensuke to follow or there would be hell to pay.

Kensuke followed, Mayumi bringing up the rear just in case Kensuke tried to slip away. She sighed to herself, wondering why her two male friends always had to cause trouble. Didn't they realize they could have been killed? They were lucky she and Hikari came to get them before something bad could happen.

As if mocking her, a large shadow loomed over them. It grew larger and larger and when they looked up, they had just enough time to recognize the massive form of the purple leviathan known as Unit 01. The purple giant crashed into the mountain side, uprooting trees and breaking apart rock and earth. Hikari and company were thrown off their feet from the impact, dust rolling over them and shrouding their view. When the thick cloud cleared, they saw the unmoving form of Unit 01, back against the mountain.

From the entry plug, Unit 01 had already locked on to Shinji's friends and they were shown clearly on the screen. They were near his head, close to the actual shrine. He was thankful for that, if they'd been anywhere else they might have been crushed beneath the trees.

_Why are they here again?! And this time they brought Hikari and Mayumi! Damn it, _thought Shinji frantically as he as he got to his feet. He glanced at the timer; he only had a little over a minute left. Looking to Shamshel, he saw the Angel begin its spinning again.

_No, _he thought as he gripped the controls. His heart rate picked up. He could see his friends looking up at Unit 01 in fear from below. They weren't running away and he wasn't sure why.

_No, I won't let this happen. _Shinji looked to Shamshel as he overheard Misato demanding to know why his classmates weren't in the shelter. She knew the techs wouldn't have an answer for that, but she just needed to say something to relieve some of the stress. His vision sharpened as he glared at Shamshel.

_**You will die here.**_

_You won't hurt my friends! _Shinji's sync ratio rose and Unit 01's jaws opened, steam leaving its maw as a guttural growl escaped its mouth. The sound around Shinji began to fade away, he couldn't hear Misato, he couldn't hear the techs, he couldn't hear Shamshel's voice anymore – he couldn't hear anything. Shinji's glare intensified, becoming menacing before he roared, angry and wild.

Unit 01 roared with him – yet the leviathan made no noise.

"What's going on?!" demanded Misato as she watched Unit 01 roar. Shinji's sync ratio had risen into the hundreds shortly after his friends had been identified. After that, Unit 01 roared – at least it seemed that way. The purple giant made no sound.

"I'm not sure," replied Ritsuko, "I've never seen this before. Maya, make sure you record all the data on this!" Maya nodded as something else began to occur on the battlefield. Unit 01 continued its silent roar and the earth responded. Ahead of the giant, rock cracked. The earth was tearing apart and trees snapped at their trunks, being blown away soon after.

Buildings fell at the leviathan's bellow, asphalt broke, spider web cracks splintering across the surface. Cars were crushed, seemingly by nothing. Glass shattered and the very air vibrated. The city was trembling at Unit 01's power yet Shamshel pressed on. It's A.T. Field appeared, meeting whatever force the purple leviathan seemed to be using in a battle of strength. The struggle was brief, and then, the A.T. Field fell to Unit 01's might.

Shamshel was taken by the force now. Its body trembled as it was assaulted. Its skin wriggled, blood beginning to pour out of the beast, splashing onto the street below. Its tentacles writhed and soon, its core shattered and its body exploded, showering the city in a red rain. Unit 01's roar ended as the countdown hit zero. Its eyes lost their light and it slumped forward.

In Central Dogma, all had gone quiet as sound returned on the battlefield. Everyone present could finally hear the patter of angel blood on the city, but none of them could speak. They didn't understand what just happened. They had never seen _anything _like this. Those who thought nothing could surprise them anymore found themselves to be wrong – so very wrong.

"What… Just happened?" asked Hyuga. Misato looked to Ritsuko and the faux blond walked over to Maya. Looking over the data her eyes widened. Seeing this, Misato asked her what she'd discovered.

"Unit 01… it killed the Angel with silence," said Ritsuko, astonished, "It killed it with sound."

==X==

Shinji groaned as he opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was the familiar, yet loathed ceiling of the hospital. He glanced around, seeing no one present before sitting up.

"What happened?" He wondered aloud.

"Well, Brother," said Leliel, appearing above him, "You have taken the first step. You have tapped into your distinction as an Angel – and used it to kill Shamshel."

"What…? What did I do? My memory – it's kind of fuzzy," he replied, holding a hand up to his head. He'd killed Shamshel? All he could remember was yelling after it had neared him and his friends – then nothing. He hadn't blacked out in a battle with an Angel in a long time.

"You, brother, are Seraphiel – the Angel of Silence."

"Silence? Seraphiel?"

"Yes," replied Leliel, landing on his bed, "You are the Silence of God. The mute killer of Heaven. You wield sound waves as a deadly weapon against those who oppose you. Now go back to sleep, brother. Rest. I shall return when you wake and then we shall talk; there is much to discuss." With that she vanished once more and Shinji lied back down, sighing.

==X==

Misato, slumped onto the bench outside of Shinji's room. She thought she'd heard him talking, but when she checked on him he was lying down, eyes closed, just as he had been earlier. She wanted to speak with him; she hoped to find out what happened to him in the entry plug. No one really understood what he'd done and they needed to find out soon. If it was somehow detrimental they needed to figure out how to stop it.

Ritsuko had explained what had happened in Central Dogma, though, Misato didn't think it sounded possible, there was no denying it. She'd seen it with her own eyes after all. According to Ritsuko, there was no such thing as true silence, but there was such a thing as sound so low that it couldn't be heard. She'd said humans couldn't really detect sound below 0 dBA and that Unit 01's roar was far below that threshold. Despite how low the sound was, it still produces a sound wave. The vibrations from the wave were so strong it carried a destructive property and that is what killed the Angel.

Misato didn't really understand the whole sound wave thing, but she didn't really care either. It had killed the angel, and as long as it held no risk, that's all that mattered – well, that and Shinji. The boy was something else, that, she couldn't deny.

* * *

Verdammt – Damn (You) [It could be used for both as far as I know.]

**Review please! I'd love to hear what you guys think about this chapter. How do you like Shinji's Distinction as an Angel? And a question I'd missed asking last chapter, how do you feel about the early introduction of Mayumi? **


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